Benzotriazole (BtAH) has been used for decades as corrosion inhibitor and antifreeze. Since it is fairly soluble in water but very stable and can only be partly removed from wastewater treatment plants, it represents a threat to the environment and thus also to human health. therefore, it is of uttermost importance to have a detection method capable of monitoring the concentration of BtAH at trace level on-site. Here, we demonstrate that a sensor based on surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy is capable of detecting trace-level concentrations of BtAH. We carefully studied the concentration dependency and the time dependent coverage. Moreover, we could not only perform the measurements with clean solution but also with real samples from a wastewater treatment plant, ensuring that our method proposed works in a complex environment.
Incorrect medication administration causes millions of undesirable complications worldwide every year. The problem is severe and there are many control systems in the market, yet the exact molecular composition of the solution is not monitored. Here, we propose an alarm sensor based on UV-Vis spectroscopy and refractometry. Both methods are non-invasive and non-destructive as they utilize visible light for the analysis. Moreover, they can be used for on-site or point-of-care diagnosis. UV-Vis-spectrometer detect the absorption of light caused by an electronic transition in an atom or molecule. In contrast a refractometer measures the extent of light refraction as part of a refractive index of transparent substances. Both methods can be used for quantification of dissolved analytes in transparent substances. We show that a sensor combining both methods is capable to discern most standard medications that are used in intensive care medicine. Furthermore, an integration of the alarm sensor in already existing monitoring systems is possible.
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